OVA
Description
Kaoru Sakurayashiki, known by his alias Cherry Blossom, is a character who navigates two distinct yet interconnected worlds: that of a respected public figure and a top-tier competitor in an underground skateboarding race called S. In his professional life, he is a celebrated and successful AI calligraphy master, operating his own calligraphy shop and using artificial intelligence to create his artwork. By contrast, when he enters the secret course of S, he adopts the persona of Cherry Blossom, a ninja-inspired skater known for his precise, theoretically perfect technique.
Physically, Kaoru is a tall, slender young man in his mid-twenties with a pale complexion, long pink hair, and sharp golden eyes. His appearance outside of S is refined and traditional; he is almost always seen wearing a dark blue kimono with a grey and yellow obi, silver-framed glasses, white tabi socks, and zori sandals, often carrying a fan. When he transforms into Cherry Blossom, his look changes completely. He ties his hair back into a high ponytail and dons a sleeveless white kimono with wide purple accents, a black mask covering the lower part of his face, and reinforced sandals. This stark contrast in attire reflects his strict separation of his professional identity from his activities in S, and he becomes irritated if anyone, particularly younger skaters, calls him Cherry in public. Traces of a rebellious youth remain on his person; during his high school years, he sported several ear piercings and a lip ring, a look that has since faded.
Kaoru is an intensely rational and analytical individual. As a master of AI calligraphy, his mind is wired for precision, data, and logical calculation, and he applies this same approach to his skateboarding. He has programmed his own artificial intelligence companion, Carla, which is installed on his skateboard and various other devices like a wristband or even a wheelchair. Carla calculates optimal angles, adjusts the board's length from a standard skateboard to a longboard, records performance metrics, and can even soothe him to sleep with a lullaby when he suffers from anxiety. This technological partnership makes him a formidable skater, allowing him to execute complex maneuvers with machine-like perfection. His skating is based on theory and efficiency, which often puts him in direct philosophical opposition to his childhood friend, Kojiro Nanjo, whose style is more instinctual and passionate.
Despite his calm and collected public demeanor, Kaoru possesses a sharp tongue and a surprisingly childlike and petulant side that emerges around those he is closest to. This is most evident in his relationship with Kojiro Nanjo, also known as Joe. Having known each other since kindergarten, the two share a deep, unbreakable bond that manifests as constant, bickering rivalry. They are described as two poles of a magnet, repelling and attracting each other in equal measure. Their arguments are frequent and spirited, ranging from trivial matters to serious discussions, but underlying it all is a profound sense of trust and mutual care. After being severely injured by another skater, Kaoru secretly leaves the hospital in Carla’s wheelchair and goes straight to Joe’s Italian restaurant, a place he frequents so often that he uses it as his own personal meeting space and charges Carla there constantly.
His most complex and painful relationship is with Ainosuke Shindo, known as Adam. In high school, Kaoru, Kojiro, and Ainosuke were close friends and co-founded what would become the S racing community. Kaoru shared a strong bond with Ainosuke through their shared passion for skating. However, their friendship fractured when Ainosuke’s skating style became increasingly violent and self-destructive, culminating in a decisive, bitter falling out on a bridge. This betrayal left a lasting scar on Kaoru, fueling a deep-seated need to confront and defeat the friend he lost. When Ainosuke returns to Japan years later, Kaoru is driven to challenge him directly, a decision that leads to a brutal race where Ainosuke strikes him in the face with his skateboard, sending him to the hospital with serious injuries.
Within the story, Kaoru serves as a mentor figure to the younger protagonists, Reki Kyan and Langa Hasegawa. Despite his often prickly exterior, he is generous with his knowledge, using his analytical skills to deconstruct Adam's dangerous techniques and help Langa prepare for their race. He is the first to recognize Langa’s background as a snowboarder and sees his immense potential. His role is to provide the strategic and intellectual counterpoint to the raw emotion and passion of the younger skaters. Over the course of the narrative, his character arc revolves around confronting his past trauma with Ainosuke. The violent race, while leaving him injured, ultimately allows him to find closure and let go of the bitterness he had held onto for years, finally finding a sense of release from that broken friendship.
Physically, Kaoru is a tall, slender young man in his mid-twenties with a pale complexion, long pink hair, and sharp golden eyes. His appearance outside of S is refined and traditional; he is almost always seen wearing a dark blue kimono with a grey and yellow obi, silver-framed glasses, white tabi socks, and zori sandals, often carrying a fan. When he transforms into Cherry Blossom, his look changes completely. He ties his hair back into a high ponytail and dons a sleeveless white kimono with wide purple accents, a black mask covering the lower part of his face, and reinforced sandals. This stark contrast in attire reflects his strict separation of his professional identity from his activities in S, and he becomes irritated if anyone, particularly younger skaters, calls him Cherry in public. Traces of a rebellious youth remain on his person; during his high school years, he sported several ear piercings and a lip ring, a look that has since faded.
Kaoru is an intensely rational and analytical individual. As a master of AI calligraphy, his mind is wired for precision, data, and logical calculation, and he applies this same approach to his skateboarding. He has programmed his own artificial intelligence companion, Carla, which is installed on his skateboard and various other devices like a wristband or even a wheelchair. Carla calculates optimal angles, adjusts the board's length from a standard skateboard to a longboard, records performance metrics, and can even soothe him to sleep with a lullaby when he suffers from anxiety. This technological partnership makes him a formidable skater, allowing him to execute complex maneuvers with machine-like perfection. His skating is based on theory and efficiency, which often puts him in direct philosophical opposition to his childhood friend, Kojiro Nanjo, whose style is more instinctual and passionate.
Despite his calm and collected public demeanor, Kaoru possesses a sharp tongue and a surprisingly childlike and petulant side that emerges around those he is closest to. This is most evident in his relationship with Kojiro Nanjo, also known as Joe. Having known each other since kindergarten, the two share a deep, unbreakable bond that manifests as constant, bickering rivalry. They are described as two poles of a magnet, repelling and attracting each other in equal measure. Their arguments are frequent and spirited, ranging from trivial matters to serious discussions, but underlying it all is a profound sense of trust and mutual care. After being severely injured by another skater, Kaoru secretly leaves the hospital in Carla’s wheelchair and goes straight to Joe’s Italian restaurant, a place he frequents so often that he uses it as his own personal meeting space and charges Carla there constantly.
His most complex and painful relationship is with Ainosuke Shindo, known as Adam. In high school, Kaoru, Kojiro, and Ainosuke were close friends and co-founded what would become the S racing community. Kaoru shared a strong bond with Ainosuke through their shared passion for skating. However, their friendship fractured when Ainosuke’s skating style became increasingly violent and self-destructive, culminating in a decisive, bitter falling out on a bridge. This betrayal left a lasting scar on Kaoru, fueling a deep-seated need to confront and defeat the friend he lost. When Ainosuke returns to Japan years later, Kaoru is driven to challenge him directly, a decision that leads to a brutal race where Ainosuke strikes him in the face with his skateboard, sending him to the hospital with serious injuries.
Within the story, Kaoru serves as a mentor figure to the younger protagonists, Reki Kyan and Langa Hasegawa. Despite his often prickly exterior, he is generous with his knowledge, using his analytical skills to deconstruct Adam's dangerous techniques and help Langa prepare for their race. He is the first to recognize Langa’s background as a snowboarder and sees his immense potential. His role is to provide the strategic and intellectual counterpoint to the raw emotion and passion of the younger skaters. Over the course of the narrative, his character arc revolves around confronting his past trauma with Ainosuke. The violent race, while leaving him injured, ultimately allows him to find closure and let go of the bitterness he had held onto for years, finally finding a sense of release from that broken friendship.